Izzo And Hill Start Pan Am Games Play On Saturday
8/1/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Aug. 1, 2003
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic - Michigan State junior guard Chris Hill (Indianapolis, Ind.) and head coach Tom Izzo will lead Team USA against Argentina in the first game of the 2003 Pan American Games on Saturday night at 7 p.m. in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The game will be a tough test as Argentina has been tabbed as one of the favorites in the tournament.
"It was a very tough draw," commented Izzo, serving as USA Basketball head coach for the first time. "Argentina is the best team I've seen as far as setting picks is concerned. All these teams are good at setting picks and getting shots. They're all good offensively."
"Argentina is supposed to be one of the best teams here," added Hill. "It's important that we trust in what the coaches are telling us. If we do that and can get an early win for some confidence, I think we have a good chance at winning a gold medal."
The 12-member team includes Andre Barrett (Seton Hall / Bronx, NY); Josh Childress (Stanford / Los Angeles, Calif.); Ike Diogu (Arizona State / Garland, Texas); Ben Gordon (Connecticut / Mount Vernon, N.Y.); Chuck Hayes (Kentucky / Modesto, Calif.); Chris Hill (Michigan State / Indianapolis, Ind.); Luke Jackson (Oregon / Creswell, Ore.); Arthur Johnson (Missouri / Detroit, Mich.); Brandon Mouton (Texas / Lafayette, La.); Emeka Okafor (Connecticut / Houston, Texas); Rickey Paulding (Missouri / Detroit, Mich.); and Blake Stepp (Gonzaga / Eugene, Ore.). Izzo is assisted by Missouri's Quin Snyder and Washington's Lorenzo Romar.
The team arrived in Santo Domingo on Wednesday to a welcome reception from the host country. They spent three hours at the airport to register as official members of the Pan American Games, and afterwards moved into a three-bedroom apartment at the Athlete Village, which is home to all the athletes participating in the games.
Due to the lack of basketball gyms available in Santo Domingo, the teams are limited on practice times. The team practiced for an hour and a half on Thursday and scrimmaged against Canada Thursday evening. Everyone on the team is healthy and able to go.
"I thought today was big for us," said Izzo. "It gave us a chance to play against someone else and it gave us a different look. We learned a lot. We've got a ways to go, but there were some bright spots too."
The eight teams competing in basketball at the Pan American Games are divided into two groups of four. Following Saturday's game, the U.S. will play Puerto Rico on Sunday (7 p.m.) and Uruguay on Monday (3 p.m.). The top two teams from the two groups will advance to the medal semifinals on Tuesday with the finals being held on Wednesday.
